Jazz Education

Kevin also teaches What Is Jazz?, an online course at Rutgers University (OLLI RU) exploring the roots, influence, and sound of jazz...

What is Jazz Course Outline:

Week 1: What Makes Jazz, Jazz?

Explore how jazz is built on personal experience, conversation between musicians, and the art of improvisation.

Week 2: The Birthplace of Jazz

Discover how New Orleans gave rise to jazz through cultural mixing, African traditions, and early innovators.

Week 3: Jazz as Social Commentary

See how jazz has reflected history—slavery, segregation, civil rights, and protest—while giving voice to struggle and hope.

Week 4: Jazz and Spirituality

Trace the role of religion and spirituality in jazz, from gospel roots to Coltrane’s search for deeper meaning.

Week 5: Jazz Today and Tomorrow

Meet the artists shaping jazz now and explore how the music continues to evolve while staying true to its roots.

What is Jazz?

This course invites students to explore jazz as more than a genre — as a soundscape of American history, cultural identity, protest, and spiritual exploration. Students will trace the evolution of jazz from its roots in New Orleans to its modern-day forms, while examining the social, cultural, and personal forces that shaped its sound. Weekly themes will include improvisation, migration, cultural context, religion, and the present-day state of jazz. Through listening, storytelling, and discussion, students will engage with jazz as a living art form — one that both reflects and reshapes the world...